Found a tick in your house? Our experts say there are 3 things you need to do.
Whether it’s dead or alive we explain what to do next.
- Dispose of the tick? Well, yes and no. Clearly you don’t want to just leave the tick and you certainly don’t want to kill it by popping it between your fingers as that can lead to diseases such as Lyme being transmitted. The best strategy is to put the tick in a sealed bag or container. You then have some choices. You could simply crush it or wrap it in tape and dispose of the tick in the waste collection. Or you could store the tick for 30 days in the event that anyone in the household develops disease – the tick could be tested for evidence of harmful bacteria or parasites. Or you could return the tick to Public Health England who has a tick recording and surveillance programme.
- Check your pet, children and yourself for ticks.
Your unattached tick didn’t have a long life ahead before you found it in your home as most of our UK native species cannot survive indoors. The exception to this is the brown dog tick (Rhipicephalus sanguineus) which can survive and reproduce in the home, although this is still uncommon and most often associated with dogs that have travelled abroad. Ticks can be tiny before they feed – as small as a sesame seed - and they tend to be found in areas where they are hard to spot. On your pet that’s around the ears and between the toes, on children it’s often around the hairline. Carefully remove any ticks found using a tick remover tool or seek help from your doctor or vet, as appropriate.
- Treat your pet with FRONTLINE® Spot on or FRONTLINE® Plus. Once attached to an untreated pet, ticks can live for up to 10 days feeding on your pet’s blood but regular treatment ensures they are killed within 48 hours. You can protect the rest of the family by covering up with long sleeves and trousers during walks and checking for ticks regularly.
